Posts by jimdandy

As internet pioneers fight to preserve .org’s non-profit status, those in charge are hiding behind dollar signs

Re: The basic problem

Och, aye laddies 'n lassies, sellin' yer asses an' yer best friends' too is a bit much; paying fer the Dingles who hae taken o'er the Trust to cuddle ye' up and stroke yer fur wilna save yer souls.

Hae ye still got any.

Why is a 22GB database containing 56 million US folks' personal details sitting on the open internet using a Chinese IP address? Seriously, why?

"We are Devo"...and your devolution is coming.

Have I Been S0ld? Troy Hunt's security website is up for acquisition

Re: I tip my hat

Bend over and expose your true self: a wanky pissant who has done nothing within light years of this one man's effort to avoid and preventing people from being pwned.

Shut up until you've done something that helps others find a way through the new stupidverse.

Hey, remember that California privacy law? Big Tech is trying to ram a massive hole in it

Yo, Gavin baby...

You and me are buddies, even though my silver spoon was an uncomfortable intrusion into your personal space. Dude, this is a nice and sneaky Cali move to make things better for our Berkeley buddies. But, and I want you to think "butt", this is not what the plebes out there want. Most of them are a lot smarter than you and me, and it seems they (without any family/friend connections) have figured out that you are a shining example of a "space not yet filled".

So Mr. Shiny, are you interested in doing good things for your constituencies (aka those citizens who support you, and those who don't) or are you just trying to sneak past the Thousand Days of that cranky old guy named Jerry?

If you want to end the magic that is California, just go ahead and follow the theme/strategy of your Dempublican family and friends. Those of us old enough to know will either survive to see that you can remake a new world in this State, or will bury our hopes and prayers along with the bodies of our friends and families, and of course ourselves.

Gin up, pony boy - your ass is on the line of History, and she can be quite a nasty bitch.

Super Cali goes ballistic: mugshot site atrocious

Beccara? Try Becerra and see if that works just a little better.

If you can't get the name right, then just exactly WHAT did you get right?

Take-off crash 'n' burn didn't kill the Concorde, it was just too bloody expensive to maintain

SST teaser?

Yeah, yeah, yeah; nasty noisy and otherwise un-green. But it was an amazing sight to see and even more to ride in. Paris to NYC in 2.2 hours. Curvature of the Earth out the tiny windows. Three (count 'em) three skins and reductive portholes from which to view the world.

And the nicest and most comfy ride (jeez, free slippers, free eye shades, a basket full of goodies to take home; real drinks from leveling off right through landing prep - and out of real bottles, not those little 1.2 oz shotgun shells,).

There's nothing like Mach 2 to make an Atlantic flight smooth and easy. Granted, the snaky fuselage made for never standing upright if you're over 5'7", and the portholes did get just a bit warm at full speed. Careful with your napping.

As a one time event it was wonderful (and that's not considering the first class "lounge" at Orly) and I get that it was not sustainable. Then.

And how about now? There haven't been any new technical marvels that could bring back that experience with better tech, and better fuel efficiency? Wrong. It's that nobody cares because it is not any more financially "important" than it was back then. In fact, the current business model for passenger air transport is to provide the same slow and ridiculous travel for everyone. Except if you can afford to pay 3-400 % above economy you can get the same warm moist towel, fancy drinks, reclining seats and a smiling bimbo/bimbette for twice the air time of the SST. That really doesn't make it twice as fun, trust me.

If y'all say it's not supportable due to the damage to the ozone layer, I'll say OK. And I'll just try to stay vertical long enough for sub-orbital travel that would kick the SST's ass in any case.

Double double, soil and trouble, fire burn and heat shield bubble: NASA cracks rover, has dirty talk with ESA

Er, a "directorate" WTF is that? This isn't East Germany governed by Russian control. Or is it? NASA didn't put men on the Moon by having 500 layers of political heinie-wipers just there for taking the heat.

Either this MoFo is ready in a trice, or it will never be. It's time to turn this entire BUMF over to the kinds of people who can leap into the future with technology and a spirit of enterprise and exploration.

And one hell of a big Insurance policy.

Get ready for the Internet of Battle Things, warns US Army AI boffin

Re: Hmmm? Deja Vu? And are Earthed Systems already Cracked ...

Och, aye laddies; lest ye think that the droobies out there by jes' waitin' fer ya to swan in and spank 'em; they'll be farther an' anon wi' a shiny new plotz fer ye to fall inta.

There nae be a quantum idjit can snark a bunch o' bloody wankers who's got a target in sight. N'less o'course they be blind to th' world around them. Afghanistan hae shewed that ta many clots wha' thought differnt.

Besides, the drones will have to fight their own wars, just to be able to send significant data to ground troops. And who will know which drone is farfing the data?

SpaceX blasted massive plasma hole in Earth's ionosphere

Re: "The particularly large circular size of the shock wave"

Or SAW is equally a Squad Assault Weapon, a particularly handy thing to have when you aren't sure what you're going to find when you get there...wherever THERE is. Luckily that device's propellants don't need any extra oxygen.

But in free-fall, you'd better have a leg wrapped around a stanchion when you pull the trigger. And be prepared to re-adjust your position after you release the trigger.

Reddit 'fesses up to just a little Russian reaming

And so it Goes

we are all subject to remarkable redunction; and the aforementioned hacking of the Universe..We cannot live under the wish that survives us. We can only hope that our lives and our beliefs continue to sustain our being. And, that we, such as we are, can continue to create a World that lives in our hearts and and minds.

Whatever mind-control is being implemented, the true choice is based on home life, local culture, and social norms. If you watch Russian approved TV and it's websites, you get one single view of the world.

If you have access to CNBC and other sites, you get another viewpoint. If you get FNBC, you get another viewpoint of the world.

The trick is, do you buy everything that is being sold, or do you dig deeper and find another level of ideas and "wisdom" that fits your world? None of these sources are trying to teach you, expose you to new ideas, or make you think about what is possible.

They exist to make you think along the lines of what they are selling. And anyone who is trying to tell you what you "should" think is a lying sack of shit.

Once you know that, you are free to find out what you need to know, and then what you should think.

Why, why, Mr American Pai? FCC boss under increasing pressure in corporate favoritism row

Re: "Sweet" Pai. So called because he keeps the regulatory environment sweet

Yes, this sucks - big time. And it is an ugly turn after things seemed better here in the US. However, before you go snarking about the troubles on this side of the Atlantic, perhaps you should consider just how well things are going elsewhere. Or not so much...

Unless, of course you are Canadian. In which case you should just thank us for the increased immigration of English speaking peoples. Well, maybe not English, but American English. Eh?

Kentucky gov: Violent video games, not guns, to blame for Florida school massacre

Re: Kentucky governor and Trump

Geshundheit!

Kentucky Gubbermint

Thank you all for your kind and considered ideas and opinions regarding the latest subtraction of our already over-optimum population levels here in the Dis-United Straits of Amerigo Vespucci. Unfortunately, since our current mind-control experiment is still undergoing some minor tweaking (yes, that is an ongoing project from the 1950's, but we are still striving to get it right) there have been and may continue to be a few variances from the original program. We fully intend to correct any errors and establish new controls and management techniques before we actually place this program into full operation. Once that program is fully engaged and operational, all such abberant behaviors will become sub-optimal and will therefore become extinct.

Trust us; We are you and we are the Government. And we are also the Walrus. Koo-koo-ka-choo.

Critical US mass spying program scrutiny lost amid partisan nonsense

Re: the so-called "partisan bickering"

Hey BB - you are absolutely right on one thing: the FISA process is only about collecting data on American Citizens regardless of any legal warrants that should be necessary.

But if you really believe that this is political, then you do not know much about law enforcement in any other state than your own. Cops (of whatever flavor) just want to know how far they can go, and how much extra work it will take. Too much work? - put that on the back burner. Free license from the Feds? Go for it! Every district needs more funding!

Especially if they can do that nifty trick where they suck up all the possible property, vehicles, bank accounts, etc under RICO. OF course, if nothing goes forward they'll give that all back, right? Wrong. They keep it, and it helps fund other fine law enforcement services.

You're not just talking about a lefty-leaning government are you Bob? Because if you thought your buddy Obama and his good friend Eric H, had a hard-on for us God-fearing Americans and our guns just wait until the next version shows up. We might just be invited to become our very own local Militia (under Federal Guidelines, of course) and we can learn to do double duty at sporting events, City Council meetings, and other subversive and risky situations.

I really don't think that anybody with more than a dozen functioning brain cells and a small smattering of American history knowledge would jump at that opportunity.

Or so I hope.

Fine, OK, no backdoors, says Deputy AG. Just keep PLAINTEXT copies of everyone's messages

Wait - you mean the PO doesn't already do that? Along with FedEx, UPS and the rest?

I just assumed that the late mail deliveries and opened packages were part of the service...

CableLabs, Cisco working on LTE-over-DOCSIS

Re: So essentially...

Well, that may be true in YOUR neighborhood, but my mid-1980's development has been by-passed by the Fiber-to-Any-Fucking-Place program of ATT (aka we'll do what we want, and you don't get any). Oh, the new Dev up the hill built in the mid 2000's has got fiber; but ATT had to drive right past my neighborhood to install it.

I'm still stuck with DSL, and no options that "guarantee" any faster service. Unless you think that Charter is a real option. As for that, just ask their current customers.

All the Big Boys want to do now is hang a bunch of WiFi repeaters on the nearest available free-access utility pole. And then charge you for a WiFi box that will hook you up. And then promise you mega-giga-service; something that you will share with all your neighbors.

I guess I'm lucky; we ain't got no poles in this neighborhood. That means that no matter how bad and slow (1.3 up and .33 down) my DSL is, it is still mine.

Customers cheesed off after card details nicked in Pizza Hut data breach

Re: 'Pizza Hut takes the information security of our customers very seriously'

Do you really think that would affect PR people in any way?

Just pay cash - or buy decent pizza elsewhere.

Super Cali goes ballistic, small-cell law is bogus. School IT outsourcing is also... quite atrocious

Oh, you too?

Hey again BB; just wanted to chip in and mention that where I live, the DSL from AT* can barely reach 1.35 mbps Down and 0.35 mbps Up. That's based on an every two week test over the last couple months.

Oh, and while they cannot deliver Uverse TV to my neighborhood (so they say) they will offer faster Internet if I sign up and pay double the current rate. But with no guarantees of any particular speed.

I'd worry a lot more about the rapacious behavior of the private companies who only intend to spend money where there is a guaranteed return far above the ability of small neighborhoods to support it.

When a new home development beyond my own outpost was being built (@ 2002), and it was completed (aka just below 50% occupancy so the Company could dump responsibility onto the local city services after applying for inclusion) ATT had built the fiber right on past my neighborhood (and others) to that new development. And yet they can't run fiber from those nodes up our streets to provide reasonable service...or won't.

Can't blame the local city; all the new projects are built under LA County rules and then are somehow "enticed" to apply for inclusion to our little city. A city of 250k residents.

Re: Translation...

Oh, BB - if only you knew. Because apparently you don't. It ain't as much about the dross of current gov't that you refer to; they can make their bones and cash on other things. Much of it has to do with the actual State requirements and then local gov't requirements for safe access to multiple utility infrastructures (in this case, "poles"). If you want to ensure that there will be an increase in injuries and deaths in the Electric/Telephonic industry, then forge ahead with your ideas - and this dangerous, if not stupid proposal.

Unless you've been a Lineman, you cannot speak from anything other than your imagination. During the influx of Cable TV monopolies (and originally that is what they were, and still are) contracted installation was done as cheap and dirty as possible. That meant stringing cable as fast as possible, without any concern for safety of the other utility workers who had to use the same poles. And much less concern for a safe and quality installation*. In our district, the installers would use the least expensive and fastest way to nail cables to the pole, frequently making it impossible for the other utilities on the same pole to safely access their equipment.

Needless to say, their were issues. They were usually solved by making sure that safety issues were addressed by the next utility crew accessing those poles. Which didn't always make the cable company's customers happy.

That was then. What is at issue now is truly different. All the major CTV and Telcos are trying to dodge the original promise of "fiber-to-the-home", by substituting local WiFi instead. All of those companies promised upgrades that were based on fiber speeds, and the tech then was to use actual, unshared fiber cables to the residence. That is not what's happening now.

The one advantage that Telcos had then was that they owned/sublet the direct connection to the consumer, with no sharing of bandwidth (except at the main nodes). Cable always had to explain that their cable capacity was "shared" by the neighborhood. Now, the Telcos want to do the same thing by putting WiFi transceivers on existing utility "aerial supports" to achieve the same lousy service that cable companiy's provide. As in nobody gets anything like the promised speed/bandwidth on holidays, weekends, and during MLB play-offs.

IN other words, it is a race to mediocrity at best when it comes to any service outside of densely populated, high-rise tenants, or million dollar estates.

Yes, every single little governmental entity is going to want it's cut at increasing revenue. We're supposed to get improved, or at least guaranteed service from them. A little graft now and again is just the same old thing this country has dealt with since Independence. And by the way, the Euros have a much more elegant version of this. If that offends you then think about all the other "enlightened" nations on this planet.*Ever seen the pix/videos of low-end European utility service wiring, much less that of third-world countries?

We need to get this done right, so it is safe, and will last at least 10 years before the next new tech revolution changes everything.

But if I had to climb a pole that had a half-dozen low voltage "entertainment" cables and devices in my way, I wouldn't worry very much about their physical device security in the course of doing my job safely. Those hooks for climbing poles are mighty sharp.

Russian spies used Kaspersky AV to hack NSA staffer, swipe exploit code – new claim

Eh, what? Dids't thou bring to the table a truly anointed pig? Or did yon fuggering of the world bring us only a joint or two of recently roasted hog?

Bugger and fugger as you will, the reality of online "life" will continue to be a sham and a shadow of the real world. The actual knives and cutlasses in this world will continue to cross, slash, and occasionally stab a few of their enemies/friends.

It is only when that kid's game of Zork actually runs the world that we will all be subject to a sad and lifeless chance to pick an avatar, one who may actually give us (or leave to us) a chance to play the game.

Life is not a game, no matter what the Children of the Corn think.

All you dumbasses who think that Life is but a Game, are about to find out that Life will not only bite you in the ass, but take away your families and your loved ones, all in the name of the game.

Thomas the Tank Engine lobotomised by fat (remote) controller

So, considering what I know about desert mining towns' history in the American West, who provides the Independent Service Providers for Paraburdoo and it's ilk in NW Oz? Perhaps the company should bring them "on-board" and train them up to be "operators" as well as "handlers".

We would call that a "two-fer" hereabouts. Double the income, double the fun. They could throw in the Doublemint Gum for free.

Downloaded CCleaner lately? Oo, awks... it was stuffed with malware

So...from the above, it seems that anyone who has used CCleaner in the past 6 mos is a sucker, and should have known better. And that anyone who has used Avast as an anti-malware/anitvirus/and-anti-whatever program is pretty much hoisted. By their own petard. And of course that includes those paid-for users.

So, brilliant ones: what is your solution to the problem of people who want to keep their skirts clean, and like to do something about it once in a while? I get the "jettison Avast ASAP" point of view. Including the regardless-of-the-dirty-CCleaner-is-rotten POV.

Most of the users out there are not the "striding-brilliantly-through-the-Cosmos" adepts that y'all are.

Isn't it about time that you offered some alternate suggestions?

Equifax's IT leaders 'retire' as company says it knew about the bug that brought it down

Re: Yes...But Who Stole It?

Doesn't really matter. If they are a bunch of script kiddies who lucked upon an open gap due to well-posted systemic failures, they are just pouncing and doing what feral children do. IF they are part of a well-funded criminal syndicate, we are all toast. These guys know what the game is and they will dredge up what they need and then send it on down the line for the bottom feeders to enjoy.

If this is a true State-level breach, then much will be withheld until the best possible time for non-monetary purposes.

The worst possible outcome is that this is one of many eruptions yet to come. And if it isn't, then what the fuck could it possibly be?

Perhaps the end of this "distributed" electronic economy?

Re: _ We pay taxes for this shit? _ - Government always the last to act...

There is an answer to this: make every agency that uses personally identifiable data in it's profit-making enterprise be completely responsible for the safe, and secure handling of that data. Make any profit-making user of that data responsible to at least one level higher than that of the individual who actually "owns" that data, since said agencies are making a profit from that data.

Nobody I know willingly serves their personal data to the web "with intent" to have it used for other peoples/companies purposes. Granted, they should know better; but how does that make them "fair targets" for criminal enterprises? Oh, and by the way, just how does not knowing that the big Data Corporations refuse to take care of an individual's personal data make that individual responsible?

Re: admin/admin

Yes, Reno NV is farther west than Los Angeles. You are correct in establishing that as a fact. So is San Francisco and numerous other Cities.

So, WTF?

Chill out about net neutrality, says FCC head, because mobile phones are great

I have only one answer to this - http://www.montypython.net/scripts/architec.php

Guess who's who?

Sci-Fi titan Jerry Pournelle passes,
aged 84

Re: BYTE

Bob Dobbs? What, is there excess slack here?

Re: Now where did that wool get to...?

And I did as well. Jerry was a child of the forties/fifties and that seemed to persuade much of his work over the last 50 years. I can relate to that, although I didn't end up with the same political or cultural imperatives that he did.

However, he did write seminal science fiction stories that included alien contact that was well-couched in a format that allowed us to think about and internally deal with alien contact scenarios.

I do think that Larry Niven's stories by themselves were better examples of true Science Fiction; that doesn't mean I didn't enjoy and "grok" Pournelle's works.

And my friends at LASFS know him much better than I do.

I am a fan. Not of everything he wrote, but of the best of his work. And I honor him for that.

And I wonder if he had ever met or heard of Jack Parsons.

House Reps grease the wheels for hundreds of thousands of robo-cars on America's streets

More Rons

SELF-DRIVE is just such an Act as one might suspect of these, er tools. I suspect that the acronym will probably turn out to be more like Safely Ensuring Lawmakers' Fiscal Delight Raking In Vast Equity.

And the rest of us will just have to duck and cover, or even better - drive old cars on back roads.

Can North Korean nukes hit US mainland? Maybe. But EMP blast threat is 'highly credible'

Re: Er, OK. Let's meet problems halfway.

Um, how about the loose nukes and fissionable materials bleeding out of the former USSR? As usual, everything is about the money, and given the lack of effort to restrain that trade (versus the profits to be made) there could be Ukrainian warheads at the least copied (or sold) on their way to NK. And elsewhere.

Pakistan, anyone?

Re: An Observation

You are half right. You duck your head, assume the position of obeisance and try to move gently out of their line of sight. Once you have done so, you either assemble your weapon, or signal your team to move ahead on the plan.

Boom.

And then the remnants of your team head for their extraction site.

There is no paranoia; just duty and the assignment.

Re: Obvious question. Could you split the whole grid into smaller sections to be more survivable?

No, not so much. There is a DC line from just south of BC that is a major source of electricity from the hydro sources in the northwest to SoCal. It doesn't exist in isolation from other sources. But it is a big deal when there are major water flows up there in the northwest. These days, there is enough Solar power with natural gas back-ups to manage most of the load in California (and therefore Oregon and WA). When the drought dropped most of that source due to lack of Hydro, the local solar, NatGas, (and other hydro, aka Colorado River) picked up the slack.

I'm not saying there aren't issues, and risks. I'm saying that so far, there hasn't been an emergency that couldn't be handled by the existing system.

Now that is not saying an enemy attempt to prong the Western US couldn't succeed with the proper EMP attack. It's never happened before, and - oh by the way - why would profit making enterprises worry about that? Force Majeure is not something that is actionable under most international law.

In other words, the electric utility companies can just say "Oops, not our fault!' And then get away with it.

Re: Never understood the obsession with ICBMs

Bob - just exactly what are your qualifications for dealing with international, and I might add, Nuclear opponents in our so-called Free World? I know exactly how nuclear EMP attacks on the West Coast will arrive, and how much chaos they will cause. That's why I have both solar and battery-backup

"stupid" systems that can survive said EMP.

You may live somewhere east of the targeted areas, and that may make you feel safe. But I suggest you re-think that idea. Unless you do as I did, and have 30 - 60 days of clean water, frozen/dried foods and a big-assed tank of gasoline at your farm, you are going to suck big time when that pissant chump/tool of China rubs his missile hard enough to make it go off.

Say good bye to that massive amount of food that is grown in California that normally feeds your family. I hope you and your kids can get out there and do more than reap wheat or corn, because you can't live off of that - at least not for long. Your cows can (oh, wait - you don't have cows?), but how many of your family know how to milk cows? By the way, try not to milk the male cows; they have a weird way of showing their appreciation. Then again, you may like that.

Dems fightin' words! FCC's net neutrality murder plot torn apart

Re: "Taking direction from president Trump"

C9 - have you read the history of just how the term "person" veered from the idea of the "natural person" into a tool for state granted "corporations" to gain all the rights of actual live, human citizens - except for two: the right to cast a vote for election to government offices, and the right to be thrown into jail for breaking the law?

I'm ignoring the part about corporations being allowed to spend money to protect the corporations' profits by pouring money into advancing their interests during elections.

It seems to me that the big deal is the power of the Almighty Dollar; Corporations can bring so much more shekels to bear in any argument than any group of "natural persons" can possibly provide. Some of that is the natural cussedness of individuals, but more than that it's that most natural persons have a lot of different issues and concerns to juggle when trying to decide what's most important.

In case you haven't noticed, corporations don't really have that problem. They just need to keep making profits and/or increasing shareholder value, while making sure they pay their "leadership" more money than their competitors do.

And I can't see how that makes anything better for the average "natural person" who'd just like to have a decent 10Mbps (download) service to their home.

The Next Big Thing in Wi-Fi? Multiple access points in every home

Wi-fi my Aunt Betty! Hasn't anyone figured out this is just an excuse for not following up on the promises to deliver fiber optic service (AKA "high speed broadband") to the home/tenant? Mesh is just mush; y'all will be sucking the life out of your neighbor's bandwidth and vice-versa. Yeah, yeah all you country bumpkins will be happy until the next 400+ home/condo development is built on your former neighbor's 20 acre farm.

All of this is just the big boi's new game on how to make even more money from you/us without actually spending any of their money on actual hardware infrastructure. Go on all you want about the new ticknology (cause it WILL bite you on the ass) and the whole mega-uploads to the Peeple's Revolution. This has nothing to do with "connecting us together" and everything to do with making us pay more for less service; and by the way charging us for all the new "infrastructure" that will consist of a box with antenna sitting on a pole, or the corner of your house and promising to deliver "blazing data speeds".

New bullshit, same old lies.

Guess who's here to tell us we're all totally wrong about net neutrality? Of course, it's Comcast

Crusty Old Bast*rd says - Huh? D'ya mean that since we hae na choice but wha' the Crown gies us that we shouldna bitch and complain aboot it? Oot here in tha West, tis nae choice but tha (now nationally owned) prong o' the local lackey ta get our low-speed connexions. Now they intend to limit us to "shared" local wifi internet after we'd all been promised a nice fat pipe to tha hoose.

If ah still ha' me teeth I'd bite the prong that feeds me. Instead Ah'm gonna erect a big one fer 'em; a giant antenna tha'll bring me direct broadcast TV and satellite Internet.

F**k em.

Senators want FBI to vet FCC's 'cyberattack' claims

As one US citizen who posted my personal beliefs regarding the FCC's role in ensuring equal access and equal treatment regarding the use of the Internet, I'd like to suggest that all of the bollocks and bimbos typically posting on The Reg hang back long enough to let those with an actual first-hand interest have their say.

Doesn't mean you can't have at me right away; feel free. I've done better than you in my sleep. But let the rest of those who have a vested interest get a chance. If there are any.

We're calling it now: FCC votes 2-1 to rip up net neutrality on Thurs

Och, aye laddies; bend o'er and kiss the foot* tha' promises ye dreams an' riches. Idjit Pie an' his owners do intend to gie ye wha' his owners desire. And then some. Remain in the position of receivership and ye'll get what ye deserve.

Boink!

*said body part may be changed as necessary.

Pie

Och, aye laddies; bend o'er and kiss the foot* tha' promises ye dreams an' riches. Idjit Pie an' his owners do intend to gie ye wha' his owners desire. And then some. Remain in the position of receivership and ye'll get what ye deserve.

Boink!

*said body part may be changed as necessary.

Another career suicide as reporter leaves The Register for broadcaster

Scaredy-cat. Trump still won't love you.

Unless you have a sex-change. And he doesn't know about it.

'I feel violated': Engineer who pointed out traffic signals flaw fined for 'unlicensed engineering'

I'll skip the rant about Engineering certification and licensing that this story fairly raves about. Where does "Sanitation Engineer" and "Custodial Engineer" fall on this spectrum of Engineering? I use those terms just to point out that calling someone an engineer does not mean they can "engineer" a product, a process, or even a piece of equipment.

Even with a degree, the title itself does not confer power or wisdom. As in any other field of endeavor, Engineering has a long history and tradition of getting things done. However, over the last 30 years that has become just a little bit different, especially in large organizations. What do you call an "engineer" who neither designs nor specs designs for or by a contractor? What do you call an engineer who never actually visits a job site wherein the product designs specified or approved by that engineer are being installed?

I'd like to call that person a deadbeat, but if that is all they have to do to meet the employer's requirements, then that would not be fair.

So I will just call them a Tool.

Funny, isn't it that a person who should be designing tools and equipment will end up being both a useless tool and a waste of company money and time.

With very few repercussions.

Oops, I said I'd skip that rant.

US surveillance court declined less than 2 per cent of applications

Re: The land of the ....?

You missed the part about Standard Oil and American interests fucking with the middle East during WW1. Go and read the book "Lawrence IN Arabia" - and get a really good look at why are where we are today.

'Nobody's got to use the internet,' argues idiot congressman in row over ISP privacy rules

Yeah, yeah yeah. Old entrenched and well-paid tools, long past their date of effectiveness but supported by the machine - what's new about that?

They do come in both flavors - Pelosi anyone? She's either more technically aware than SimpsonBrenner, or just better supported by staff.

Changing the flavor doesn't always make a difference. An educated and aware majority of the voting population should be able to make changes that will make a difference.

Lacking that (as we seem to be), anybody else got an answer?

And don't give me the "R" word; it hasn't gotten bad enough for that yet.

New satellites could cause catastrophic space junk collisions

Re: Satellite Collisions

Ooh! Hunter-snatcher satellites that launch multi-prong nets of rockets to take out the annoying space junk from leftover launches, then delivering them to safe sites below (or burning up in the atmosphere)!

Or anything else someone doesn't want up there.

Seems like a perfect reboot of Missile Command.

RIP Bob Taylor: Internet, desktop PC pioneer powers down at 85

Old guys, old shit. It's only history and nobody under 50 even knows what that is (beyond a few years).

But they will learn, one of these days.

Europe will fine Twitter, Facebook, Google etc unless they rip up T&Cs

Yes, exactly. Although the employers, health care subcontractors and hackers will probably beat them to it, at least in the Gnu World.

Uber: Please don't give our London drivers English tests. You can work out the reason why

What's the difference between an amateur and a professional? Not too long ago the answer would have been - Trust. Should Uber (or any other upstart/new paradigm agency) wish to compete on an even playing field with existing service providers then that should be the main focus. Creating trust will allow many good things to happen for those willing and able service providers, new or existing.

And yet I suspect the roulette wheel of service quality vs cost will eventually overwhelm such mundane considerations. If it's cheap enough, then quality will not matter in this century. After all, rolling the dice may work out well enough to save a few quid.

CIA boss: Make America (a) great (big database of surveillance on citizens, foreigners) again!

Re: The Phoenix Syndrome

Hey Poot - grow a set. Become a candidate for Prime Minister of Canada, and step up to the World Class game. Become a World Class Player and make a difference, rather than just bitching about your southern neighbor.

Oh wait. I forgot. You guys are just so nice and non-controversial that you don't do that. Of course, if you'd stepped up to make your country a participating and partnering nation along with the USA and Mexico, you could have a say at the table. Instead, now you get to color your hair orange and do what you are told.

As it has been in the past, except for the hair color. And don't be rogering any ex-rockstar wives while you're at it.

Re: The Phoenix Syndrome

Mr. Poot,

Your diatribe is interesting, considering you are barking at the voters of another country. Had you and your country decided to take a major part in World Affairs, your opinion may have been considered as relevant.

But since your whiny, poutine-loving and hiding-behind-the-US cheese-government has been busy swiping your own privacy laws into oblivion, I understand your angst.

You really, really wish that we could have done these important things for you. I do too.

But since my fellow Americans (don't ask) have decided to do things a different way, well then you should rejoice, instead of whining. Or, you should move south into Michigan/Wisconsin/Minnesota and help turn their recently and stupidly Republican majorities into a North American Solidarity movement.

Of course, you would then have to root for American football teams like the Vikings, Packers, and Lions. And then you'd have to learn the rules of those games. Just like you'd have to learn the rules of our political games.

I welcome you to our land, the Land of the Free, and the Home of the Brave*.

*If you qualify.